What is your plan for 2014????

Do You Have a Plan for your Health Insurance in 2014?

Well, we are off and running towards the biggest change in the health insurance market since people started selling policies.  Mandated coverage, penalties, Cadillac taxes, rate stabilization funds, exchanges, navigators…the list goes on and on.  As if insurance didn’t already have enough jargon!!!  The real question is…What is YOUR plan for health insurance.   Will you continue to purchase your coverage through your employer?  Will you test the waters in the state or federally run health insurance Exchange?  Do you qualify for a subsidy?  Does any of this cause your head to spin on your shoulders???

Yeah, I know.  Like we needed something else to figure out!   Well, Logan Lavelle Hunt has been doing a lot of thinking for people just like you and me.  We want to make sure that people make the appropriate choices when it comes to your health insurance needs.  With 50% of Americans likely to continue obtaining coverage through their employer, we feel like that is the best option if it is available to you.  If you are an employer, consider the reason that you offer benefits to your people currently.  Most offer these types of benefits as a sweetener used to attract and retain quality employees.  It is our belief that retention of employees will continue to increase in importance as our nation rebounds from the recent recession.  If you don’t offer health care, you should consider making that a priority in 2014 and beyond.

If you don’t have coverage available to you through an employer, you will be required to purchase it from somewhere.  The law mandates that everyone (save a few exemptions for a few reasons) have health insurance coverage or face a fine. (Read TAX)  Lower income people will have subsidies available, and purchasing through a state or federal exchange will be an option.  You may also go through a traditional insurance market to get this coverage as well.  I would recommend that you at least look at the coverage through a health insurance exchange, just to see if you qualify for a subsidy.  I have included a link, Kaiser Subsidy Calculator, so you can have a better feel for where you will stand regarding individual coverage and what you may be entitled to get from the government.  These are estimated rates, using a national average; therefore your specific rate may be different from those depicted here.

Bottom line is this…get help from a professional.  Doctor and hospital networks will probably be changing; the products you will be purchasing will definitely be changing. Change is very hard, and can be quite intimidating.  It is always nice to have someone who has been down the road you will be traveling helping you along the route.  We have the staffing and the capability to handle Employer based health plans as well as individual health plans.  Open enrollment starts on October 1 for the individual marketplace.  The captain has turned on the seat belt sign; we are expecting turbulence for the next several years.  Aren’t you glad that we have already been on this route before???

Peace!